# Mac Baren – Virginia Flake



## Nick S. (Jul 10, 2011)

Mac Baren - Virginia Flake
From the tin:_ "Dominated by the finest Virginia tobaccos and with just a little top flavor to enhance the natural sweet Virginia taste, Virginia flake is a cool and slow burning flake tobacco which gives you a satisfying smoke.." _

In The Tin/Pouch
This is a flake tobacco that is light to medium brown, it looks a lot like the Orlik flakes. In the tin it smells sweet and grassy, and the moisture content is just about right. 

The Burn
I rubbed mine out and filled my pipe, it took the light easily and I didn't need to relight. I had no issues with moisture, and I did find that it behaved better in a smaller bowled pipe. 

The Smoke
The smoke from this tobacco starts out sweet and has a noticeable top flavoring. The top flavoring is very similar to a citrus like flavor, and as actually quite nice. The flavoring fades as the bowl progresses and is just about gone by the bottom third. The Virginias start out sweet and bright and move to a deeper and more robust flavor by the end. Unfortunately this tobacco always seems to be on the edge of biting, so it won't take much abuse. 

The Packaging, and Price
This tobacco is packaged quite nicely, in fact if you base your purchases on appearance alone this might be one of the nicest presentations available. It comes in a square tin that has a bright yellow lid with the decals painted on to it, not a sticker like most tins nowadays. Open it up and there is a gold colored foil wrapper with Mac Baren Flake embossed on it. The price is just as good as the packaging www.smokingpipes.com sells these 50g tins for $8.19, and if you want to buy a pound of it you can get it for $35.83

The Bottom Line
I really like the presentation and flavor of this tobacco. Unfortunately, if not smoked carefully this tobacco can be almost painful to smoke. The smoke has a sharp edge to it, and if abused it can go from a pleasant sweet smoke to a painful bitey smoke. It is very similar to Orlik Golden Sliced, so if you enjoy that give Virginia Flake a shot. For those of you who haven't ventured into the world of Virginia tobaccos, note that when I say this is sweet I do not mean it is sweet like an aromatic, it is closer to how a sweet bread is "sweet" compared to a cinnamon roll.

My Other Reviews
A tour of drug store blends, stop one: John Middleton's Carter Hall
A tour of drug store blends, stop two: John Middleton's Prince Albert
A tour of drug store blends, stop three: Pinkerton Tobacco Company - Granger
A tour of drug store blends, stop four: Lane Limited - Captain Black Regular (White)
A tour of drug store blends, stop five: Lane Limited - Captain Black Gold
A tour of drug store blends, stop six: John Middleton's Sugar Barrel
Ogden's of Liverpool - St. Bruno Ready Rubbed
Orlik - Golden Sliced
GL Pease - Lagonda
Peterson - Irish Flake
Gawith Hoggarth & Co. - Brown Bogie
Gawith Hoggarth & Co. - Kendal Kentucky
Gawith Hoggarth & Co. - Dark Bird's Eye
Gawith Hoggarth & Co. - Bob's Chocolate Flake
McClelland - Bulk #805 Carolina Deluxe
McClelland - Holiday Spirit
Peter Stokkebye - Cube Cut
Peter Stokkebye - English Luxury
Peter Stokkebye - Luxury Twist Flake
Peter Stokkebye - Luxury Navy Flake
Rattray's - Black Mallory (aged 12 years)
Lane Limited - Bulk #101 BCA
Lane Limited - Bulk #102 1Q
Lane Limited - Bulk #182 BLWB
Dan Tobacco - Blue Note


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## RJpuffs (Jan 27, 2008)

Nick S. said:


> Unfortunately, if not smoked carefully this tobacco can be almost painful to smoke. The smoke has a sharp edge to it, and if abused it can go from a pleasant sweet smoke to a painful bitey smoke.


Good review. Its been a while since I've tried this one, and I do remember the quoted part above, true, dat!

I also remember it has a very sharp room note, not unpleasant but it could irritate a spouse (hence, its been a while since I've tried it).


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## Nick S. (Jul 10, 2011)

RJpuffs said:


> Good review. Its been a while since I've tried this one, and I do remember the quoted part above, true, dat!
> 
> I also remember it has a very sharp room note, not unpleasant but it could irritate a spouse (hence, its been a while since I've tried it).


Yeah, I have to smoke outside so I never have any problem with the smell... on the downside I can never tell what kind of a room note a tobacco has...


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## laloin (Jun 29, 2010)

I enjoy Virginia flake in the summer, caz it reminds me of drinking a lemonade/limeade, and it burns cool. But it can bite, if you start pulling like a freight train. Haven't tried it with any age. Reminds me if I get any money back on my tax return I need to put a order in
troy


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